Get Behind Me, Now Stay There

Earlier this month I appeared on Episode 61 of the wildly popular KSKQ 89.5 FM radio show and podcast Get Behind Me, Now Stay There. I was interviewed by Charlie Stanton, President of Just Imagine It Ink. You can take a listen by pressing play below (my segment begins at 41:32)...

Get Behind Me, Now Stay There is a weekly art and entertainment radio show and podcast. Charlie Stanton, Cyrus Emerson, Jerry Renforw, and Maya Seligman (who also hosts the popular radio show Maya’s Mix on KSKQ) bring you the news and views you want to know in the art and entertainment world. The show also features interviews with authors, artists, film producers and directors, poets, musicians or maybe just the guy down the street.

The show is locally produced in Ashland, Oregon (home of the most talented people of any community in the Rogue Valley) and recorded at the Blackstone Audio Studios. For great interviews and lively banter tune in to KSKQ 89.5 FM every Friday at 6:00 pm or catch Get Behind Me, Now Stay There on iTunes.

The Buffy Chronicles (S1- E5)

On Episode 72 of The Martin Lastrapes Show Podcast Hour, screenwriter and fellow Buffy enthusiast Liz Hersey joined me and Chanel for "The Buffy Chronicles" as we provided commentary for Episode 5 of Season 1, "Never Kill a Boy on the First Date."

Here are a few of the topics we covered:

  • Liz is Canadian
  • The Buffy episode that hooked me as a fan
  • Chanel and Liz want to f*ck Giles
  • Why we had to record on our phones
  • I love Cordelia (that foxy minx)
  • Dawson's Creek
  • The Great American Pitchfest

Liz writes prolifically about Buffy the Vampire Slayer on her blog The Liz Channel, so, of course, back in November of 2013 she'd written about the very episode we watched. Here's an excerpt:

"Like so many spunky romcom heroines before her, Buffy wants to find out if she can slay vampires AND have a love life. The answer? Not a chance in Hellmouth.

It's a busy day at the office for Buffy. She and Giles have discovered the Master's latest dastardly plot: to bring forth the Anointed One, a supervamp who will rise out of the ashes of five deaths and lead the Slayer straight to hell. Well, by hell they mean the Master's lair. And dude's been there a loooong time. When was the last time he brushed his teeth? Gives new meaning to the word Hellmouth."

You can read the rest of the article HERE. And, while you're there, read more of Liz's writing. You won't regret it. 

R.I.P. Michael PonTell

Michael PonTell, a bright and ambitious young writer, passed away on May 12, 2015. I'd enjoyed a wonderful conversation with Michael earlier this year about writing and the state of the publishing industry, which I shared on Episode 71 of The Martin Lastrapes Show Podcast Hour.

I met Michael PonTell in March of this year when he came over to my apartment to record a podcast and I liked him right away. Before we met, I'd received an email from my friend S. Kay Murphy on February 6. In part, here’s what it said:

"I want to introduce you to a young man who may be Martin Lastrapes in another life, another dimension. He's trying to do a good thing, and, if you agree with my assessment, I want you to help him do it by getting him on the podcast if you can. His name is Michael PonTell. I've told him all about you, and he was suitably impressed. (See? He's smart.) I told him he could expect to hear from you within a few days, as you generally do what I ask you to—because you trust my judgment. Don't make a liar out of me! Email him and introduce yourself, then let him explain what he's up to."

As I’ve talked about many times before, S. Kay Murphy is something of a guardian angel in my life, so if she asks me for a favor, then I won’t hesitate to do it. So, I emailed Michael just as soon as I finished reading Kay’s message.

Michael wrote me back the following day and we had a lively back and forth conversation via email, in which he told me about Onlinbrary, which is a website designed to help aspiring authors get their work published. We eventually scheduled a podcast conversation for March 6, 2015.

Michael was very sweet and kind, with a fierce intelligence and intellect brewing just beneath the surface. We talked for over an hour and by the time we were done I knew I’d met somebody extraordinary. The sort of person who was destined to change to world.

On May 15, I received an email from Michael’s father, letting me know that he’d passed away.

He was 23 years old.

Michael PonTell | Dec. 22, 1991 - May 12, 2015

Sometimes life just doesn’t make sense. 23 years just isn’t fair. I can only imagine how much better the world would’ve been with 60 or 70 more years of that man in it. But, then again, Michael PonTell did more with his 23 years than most of us do in a lifetime.

So, well done, Michael.

Well done for a life well lived.

R.I.P.

In lieu of flowers, Michael’s family requests donations be sent to Achieve Goals, which is an educational 501c-3 non-profit organization affiliated with Onlinbrary. The address is 11625 Mount Hood Court, Rancho Cucamonga, CA 91737. Please include “Michael PonTell” in the memo line.  The money will be used to support young writers, coordinate future contests, and provide scholarships.

Chatting with...Me?!

On Episode 70 of The Martin Lastrapes Show Podcast Hour, blogger, expert shopper, and podcaster Chanel Chakko filled in as guest host and her guest was...me! 

Here are a few of the topics we talked about:

  • Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles
  • Being creative as a kid
  • The benefits of community college
  • A few of my favorite authors, including:
    • Tom Robbins
    • Michael Chabon
    • Jasper Fforde
    • Chuck Palahniuk
  • The Vampire, the Hunter, and the Girl
  • The new novel I'm writing

Chanel usually fills the role of occasional co-host on the show, but this was her first time hosting the show and she did an outstanding job! In her opening monologue, Chanel talked about her new favorite comic book, iZombie, which she discovered after watching the TV show on the CW (well, technically she watches it on Hulu). She also spent time gushing over my new novel, The Vampire, the Hunter, and the Girl, which, for me, was one of the high points of the episode.

Chanel Chakko

She loves movies, music, TV, professional wrestling, mixed-martial arts, and comic books amongst other awesome stuff. Growing up, Chanel often rooted for the villains in Disney films, because they had better clothes and were way more interesting than the princesses. 

Chanel loves most anything dark and surreal, cultivating a love for movies and TV shows such as Labyrinth, Beetlejuice, The Munsters and Buffy the Vampire Slayer. She also loves art and artists such as Glenn Arther and Handiedan. As an avid reader and lover of books Chanel enjoys most anything by Tom Robbins, Neil Gaiman, and, of course, Martin Lastrapes.  

As a fashion lover, Chanel has cultivated a unique appreciation for the more “costume-y” side of fashion, which has led to her overwhelming love of gothic and pinup fashions. Her blog, Chanel's Sick & Pretty Parlour is a place for the beautiful and macabre where you'll find her views on fashion, beauty, and shopping.

 

Chatting with Michael McCarty

On Episode 69 (don't worry, I got to the adolescent jokes before you did) of The Martin Lastrapes Show Podcast Hour, I chatted with award-winning author Michael McCarty, whose latest book is Modern Mythmakers: 35 Interviews with Horror & Science Fiction Writers and Filmmakers.

Here are a few of the topics we covered:

  • Where Cary Grant died
  • The Amazing Kreskin
  • Interviewing horror and sci-fi icons
  • Being a journalist
  • Gushing over Elvira
  • Co-writing novels

This is what Tanja Jurković of The Gothic Imagination had to say about Modern Mythmakers:

"We all grew up eagerly absorbing the works of Ray Bradbury, Richard Matheson, John Carpenter and the likes, allowing their words and actions to shape our lives, and our character. They all taught us to appreciate literature, film and art in any other form. We witnessed the birth of the dark and the weird, and we realized that our nightmares can come to life and haunt us through novels, short stories, feature films and representations on the big screen. Modern Mythmakers is a thorough account of life’s works of some of the most famous and legendary writers, directors and actors presented in 35 interviews (with 5 additional interviews included in the eBook edition). It raises nostalgia in the minds of science fiction and horror fans and has the ability to create a generation of new fans and followers, in that way continuing to build a long lasting tradition and showing appreciation for some of the classics of science fiction and horror, that helped us form a new way of looking at the world in which we live in."

Writing Rules (and Why They Suck!)

I hate writing rules and I hate when any writer (or writers) pretends there is some grand and invisible list of rules that all writers (aspiring or otherwise) must follow in order to be considered good at their craft. So, on Episode 68 of The Martin Lastrapes Show Podcast Hour, I decided to share my thoughts on writing rules. I also share "Elmore Leonard's 10 Rules of Writing," giving my personal thoughts on each one.

(SPOILER: We agree a lot!)

Here are a few of the topics I covered:

  • The new novel I'm working on
  • My early writing experiences
  • The time I quit writing
  • Writing Rules vs. Writing Principles
  • The film Adaptation
  • The Prologue in Lolita
  • Why you shouldn't bore your reader

Now, here's the thing, I know that in one sentence I said I hate when any writer espouses a set of rules and in the next I said I agree with a lot of Elmore Leonard's rules...but I'm not being contradictory. At least not on purpose. What Leonard calls rules, I would call principles. The difference between a rule and a principle is something I talk about in Episode 68. As a bit of a teaser, here is how "Elmore Leonard's 10 Rules of Writing" begins:

Elmore Leonard

1. Never open a book with weather.

If it’s only to create atmosphere, and not a character’s reaction to the weather, you don’t want to go on too long. The reader is apt to leaf ahead looking for people. There are exceptions. If you happen to be Barry Lopez, who has more ways to describe ice and snow than an Eskimo, you can do all the weather reporting you want.

How do I feel about Rule #1? Well, you're going to have to listen to Episode 68 to find out...


Chatting with Jasper Bark

Jasper Bark, award-winning and critically acclaimed British novelist and comic book writer, was my guest on Episode 67 of The Martin Lastrapes Show Podcast Hour. Jasper has authored several books, comics, and graphic novels, including Stuck On You and Other Prime Cuts.

Here are a few of the topics we covered:

  • Getting into trouble in school
  • Reading comic books
  • Telling stories with visual imagery 
  • "Stuck On You"
  • Being a journalist
  • Working with publishers

Here's what Kit Power of Ginger Nuts of Horror had to say about Stuck on You and Other Prime Cuts:

"Let’s get this out of the way upfront: Yes, these are dark tales. In them, gruesome and grotesque things frequently happen to people. Some will make you question the limits of human endurance. Some will make you question what you had for lunch, or kill your appetite stone dead. My experience of extreme horror writing is fairly limited, but if there’s stuff that’s hugely more extreme than these tales, I’m certainly not in any hurry to read them. However, there’s something which for me is far, far more important than the darkness of these tales: namely, they are very, very good. Throughout this collection, Mr. Bark demonstrates a considerable level of ability to write in different voices, to tell vastly different tales."

It's a Family Affair

On Episode 66 of The Martin Lastrapes Show Podcast Hour—"Are You Up?"—I was joined by a motley crew of guests, all of whom conspired for a fun and lively episode. In all, there was my German nephew, Jannis, my American Nephew, Nathaniel Lastrapes, my wife/occasional co-host, Chanel Chakko, my mom, Kathy Lastrapes, my dad, Larry Lastrapes, and my father-in-law, Mike Chakko. 

The episode came about when, the night previous, my called to let me know Jannis had come into town for a surprise visit. She wanted to get everyone together for dinner before he flew home to Germany, so we all got together the following night. Because Jannis is a fan (and a previous guest) of the podcast, I couldn't let him leave without having him on the show. 

So, everyone came to my apartment after dinner and, after sitting around for a bit, Jannis, Nathaniel, and I got behind the mics. As the show progressed, I decided to take advantage of the live audience and began randomly plucking unsuspecting guests (READ: suckers) and putting them behind the mic.  

 We covered a number of topics, including:

  • Jannis the globetrotter
  • My mother's terrifying text messages
  • Nathaniel's trip to San Francisco
  • Chanel's trip to London
  • The Germanwings plane crash
  • Me stalking Chanel at the Virgin Megastore
  • Love, happiness, and the meaning of life

All in all, it turned into a very funny, poignant, and surprisingly emotional episode.

 

  

Q&A for Coyote Chronicle

I was recently featured in the Coyote Chronicle for a Q&A written by Emmanuel Gutierrez. The Coyote Chronicle is the newspaper of my alma mater, Cal State San Bernardino, so it was particularly gratifying to be featured in their pages. 

Martin Lastrapes: Alumnus & Author

By Emmanuel Gutierrez |Features Editor|

 

Acclaimed author and CSUSB alumnus Martin Lastrapes published his second novel, The Vampire, the Hunter, and the Girl, topping Amazon’s Hot New Releases in Vampire Horror during its first week on sale.

Lastrapes won the Paris Book Festival’s grand prize and the Hollywood Book Festival for General Fiction for his first novel Inside the Outside. He was runner-up for the New York and San Francisco Book Festivals.

Lastrapes earned his Bachelor’s degree in English/Creative Writing and graduated after completing his Master’s in Composition in 2006.

The Vampire, the Hunter, and the Girl is a “whimsical vampire horror,” set in the Inland Empire, following Adam and Jesus—the vampire and the hunter—vying for the heart of Olivia when an unbeknownst, fateful presence changes everything.

The first chapter of the novel is available free of charge to those who sign up for the mailing list on martinlastrapes.com.

The following interview between Martin Lastrapes (ML) and myself (EFG) was conducted via e-mail—viewer discretion is advised.

EFG: You have two novels published, The Vampire, the Hunter, and the Girl being your second, as well as three short stories self-published on Amazon, you’ve won the Paris Book Festival’s Grand Prize and Hollywood Book Festival for General Fiction (congratulations), host a podcast, grown an awesome beard, and teach English. Is there anything you can’t do?

ML: Well, thank you very much! In particular, thanks for noticing the beard. I was beginning to think nobody cared. The three shorts were published by Exciting Press, which is run by my buddy Will Entrekin. Now, to answer your question...

Click HERE to read the article in its entirety.

Chatting with Tammy Salyer

On Episode 65 of The Martin Lastrapes Show Podcast Hour, my guest was author and editor Tammy Salyer. Tammy is the author of The Spectras Arise Trilogy and when she's not writing and publishing, she's busy running her company Inspired Ink Editing.

Here's a few of the topics we covered during our conversation:

  • Reading Stephen King novels
  • Our mutual love of Tom Robbins
  • Disguising non-fiction as fiction
  • Working as a freelance editor
  • The difference between "self-publishing" and "independent publishing"
  • The importance of a professionally designed book
  • Writing book trilogies
  • Jumping out of airplanes on purpose

Book One of The Spectras Arise Trilogy is Contract of Defiance. Here's the synopsis:

Winner of the 2010 Rocky Mountain Fiction Writers Colorado Gold Contest for best action/thriller. Finalist in the Kindle Book Review 2012 Best Indie Book Contest for science fiction/fantasy. When all other options run out, never let go of your gun. In a few hundred years, the Algol system becomes humanity’s new home. The question is: Is it a better one? When a crew of arms smugglers botches their latest job, Corps-deserter and crewmember, Aly Erikson, is separated from her brother, the only person she can trust, and left behind to fight for her life. In the aftermath, as she tries to piece together what happened, a crew of roughneck settlers pressgang her into a dangerous mission in the heart of Corps territory. Time is running out to get back everything she’s lost: her crew, her brother, her options. But no one is taking her gun.

Chatting with Amanda Headlee

On Episode 64 of The Martin Lastrapes Show Podcast Hour, my guest was author, blogger, and all-around great gal, Amanda Headlee. Amanda, when she's not working on her forthcoming debut novel, writes articles about the craft of creative writing for The Sarcastic Muse, which is a terrific website for anybody interested in creative writing.

During my conversation with Amanda Headlee we covered a series of topics, including:

  • How living in the middle of the woods affected Amanda's imagination
  • Writing techniques for scaring readers
  • Amanda talks about working on her first novel
  • Pantser or plotter?
  • The influence H.P. Lovecraft on Amanda's writing
  • Traditional Publishing vs. Independent Publishing

While you wait for Amanda to finish her debut novel, you can get a sample of her fiction in the anthology Somewhere in the Middle of Eternity, which was published by Firebringer Press in July 2014. Here's a synopsis:

In eternity, all stories are timeless. Devastated by war, a young couple finds healing through the intervention of a magical fox... A man obsessed with a burlesque dancer discovers she may not be the beauty she seemed from afar... Desperate to save his dying wife, an exiled scientist makes a discovery that could change the fate of a galaxy... An Irishman finally confronts the specter of death that has tormented him since childhood... An ex-con's hearing aid picks up a vintage radio show that never aired, leading her to a confrontation with the unexpected... These are but a few of the imaginative tales awaiting you within these pages as chronicled by Daniel Patrick Corcoran, Michael Critzer, Phil Giunta, Amanda Headlee, Susanna Reilly, Stuart S. Roth, Steven H. Wilson and Lance Woods.

So, if you haven't listened to it already, go on and enjoy my conversation with Amanda Headlee.

You won't regret it. 

 

Chatting with James Brown | Part 2

On Episode 63 of The Martin Lastrapes Show Podcast Hour, I enjoyed an amazing conversation with critically acclaimed writer—and my mentor—James Brown, author of The Los Angeles Diaries and This River. 

During PART 2 of my conversation with Brown we covered a series of topics, including:

  • The etiquette of workshop critiquing
  • Going back to fiction writing 
  • Adapting book into a screenplay 
  • This River 
  • The evolution of the publishing industry

Of This River, here's what The Los Angeles Times had to say:

"What is fascinating to watch is not a spectacle of decline—he writes of addiction to alcohol, heroin, meth, prescription drugs and antidepressants—but his geologic sculpting, this wearing away of a person, memories and all, down to some pure and simple core. This River continues where Brown's first memoir, The Los Angeles Diaries, left off. It's molten stuff, the story of his efforts to control his river of rage."

Chatting with James Brown | Part 1

On Episode 62 of The Martin Lastrapes Show Podcast Hour, I enjoyed an amazing conversation with critically acclaimed writer—and my mentor—James Brown, author of The Los Angeles Diaries and This River. 

During PART 1 of my conversation with Brown we covered a series of topics, including:

  • Academic struggles in grade school 
  • The difference between an autobiography and a memoir 
  • The Los Angeles Diaries
  • Brown's appearance on CNN 
  • The criminal activities of Brown's mother 
  • How the past effects drug and alcohol abuse 
  • Michael Chabon, Brown's college classmate

Of The Los Angeles Diaries, here's what Publishers Weekly had to say:

"Brown's genius compels readers to sympathize with him in every instance. Juxtaposed with the shimmery unreality of Hollywood, these essays bitterly explore real life, an existence careening between great promise and utter devastation. Brown's revelations have no smugness or self-congratulation; they reek of remorse and desire, passion and futility. Brown flays open his own tortured skin looking for what blood beats beneath and why. The result is a grimly exquisite memoir that reads like a noir novel but grips unrelentingly like the hand of a homeless drunk begging for help."

Being an Indie Author

Shortly after I published my first novel, Inside the Outside, I wrote my first article for Self-Publishing Review, "A Self-Publisher's Manifesto" (I published an extended version of that article on my website, which I re-titled "An Indie Author's Manifesto"). 

As I prepared to publish my second novel, The Vampire, the Hunter, and the Girl, I found myself thinking a lot about what it means to be an indie author and how I feel about it. So, I decided to talk about it on my podcast in "Episode 60: Being an Indie Author."

A few of the topics I covered:

  • The amazing opportunities indie publishing offers
  • Why I wrote "A Self-Publisher's Manifesto"
  • My first rejection letter from a literary agent
  • Indie Publishing vs. Traditional Publishing

Chatting with Emily Bleeker

On Episode 61 of The Martin Lastrapes Show Podcast Hour, I enjoyed a great chat with Emily Bleeker, author of the #1 bestselling novel Wreckage. 

During my conversation with Bleeker we covered a series of topics, including:

  • Emily’s love or sci-fi (especially The X-Files)
  • The influence of our parents on our reading
  • Emily’s love for classic literature (especially Jane Eyre and Gone with the Wind)
  • Teaching creative writing to kids
  • Emily's cancer diagnosis at age 24 and how it inspired her to write her first novel
  • Literary agents and query letters
  • Publishing with Lake Union Publishing
  • The gratification of reader feedback
  • Working with various editors for each step of Wreckage
  • Finding time to write while raising four kids

Of Wreckage, here's what Bleeker's editor, Danielle Marshall, had to say:

"Here’s where my obsessive reading, sharing, reading, sharing cycle began: once they return home, Dave and Lillian fabricate a story about what happened on the island to protect both themselves and their families. Because the truth is...really dark. And when a hard-nosed cable news reporter won’t let the story die, their lies begin to fray around the edges, threatening to destroy everything they struggled so desperately to come home to. Bleeker’s debut has all the spectacle of our fanatical media culture: drama, suspense, secrets, and human interest. Similar to the pact Dave and Lillian made never to reveal what happened, I’ve made a pact with the author not to give anything away to you. But rest assured, I couldn’t stop telling everyone I knew about Wreckage—and I have a feeling you’ll be obsessed, too!"

FIRST CHAPTERS

The Vampire, the Hunter, and the Girl

Adam and Jesus (the vampire and the hunter) have an innate antagonism, which is only heightened once they discover they're competing for the affections of Olivia (the girl).

Product Details

  • Paperback: 300 pages
  • Publisher: Cannibal Press (March 23, 2015)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-13: 978-0985704322

A Meditation on Horror

Am I a horror writer?

Well, it's not a very straightward answer and I spent about an hour meditating on that question—and horror in general—on Episode 59 of The Martin Lastrapes Show Podcast Hour (press PLAY below to listen for yourself).

Technically, the answer is yes.

Yes, I am a horror writer.

Technically.

But, do I consider myself a horror writer?

No.

It becomes a tricky dance with nuance, I think, because at this point in my young career as a novelist, I’ve only published one novel, Inside the Outside, which is without question a horror novel. So, technically that makes me a horror writer. But, that said, I don't think of myself as a horror writer. Anyway, you can listen to me wrestle with that idea on Episode 59.

But, that's not all you'll hear on Episode 59. You'll also hear an interview that my buddy Tim Chizmar conducted with horror icon Tony Todd.

Tim's interview was on behalf of Icons of Fright. In the interview, Tony Todd is promoting his latest film, Vanish, which also stars Danny Trejo.

Big thanks to Icons of Fright Editor-in-Chief Jerry Smith, Tim Chizmar, and the Official Comic Book Expert of The Martin Lastrapes Show Podcast Hour Anthony Ray Bench for sharing that audio with me and letting me share it with my podcast listeners.

2015 Academy Awards

The 87th Academy Awards ceremony has come and gone. It's been about two weeks or so since it ended and, well, I still think about it. 

Not that the awards had a profound impact on my life, but I look forward to them every year. I love watching the nominated movies and wondering aloud—usually with Chanel—who's gonna win, who's gonna lose, how's the host gonna do, who's gonna have a moment that lives forever in the pantheon of Oscar lore. But, before we got answers to those questions, there was something else.

Before Birdman won the most Oscars of the night and Boyhood walked away with only one, before The Grand Budapest Hotel was placated with a series of minor awards and American Sniper was virtually ignored, before Common and John Legend stole the night with a brilliant performance honoring Selma and The Imitation Game screenwriter Graham Moore gave a speech that reinvigorated my faith in humanity, before J.K. Simmons officially accepted the award for Whiplash we all knew he would win and Eddie Redmayne appeared more surprised than anybody that he won for The Theory of Everything...

...before all of that, there were the podcasts. 

Chanel and I did a series of podcasts leading up to and following the 2015 Academy Awards. For your convenience and pleasure, I've gathered them all below.

Enjoy.

Episode 54: Pre-Oscars Buzz

After an awkward and inappropriate opening three minutes, Chanel and I talk about the eight Oscar-nominated films we'll be watching at the 2015 Best Picture Showcase.

Episode 55: Best Picture Showcase | PART 1

Chanel and I attended Day 1 of AMC's Best Picture Showcase where we watched The Grand Budapest Hotel, Whiplash, Birdman, and Selma. We share our thoughts and crack a few jokes along the way.

day-1.jpg

Episode 56: Best Picture Showcase | PART 2

Chanel and I attended Day 2 of AMC's Best Picture Showcase where we watched Boyhood, The Theory of Everything, The Imitation Game, and American Sniper. 

Episode 57: 2015 Academy Awards

Chanel and I tell you all about how much we loved the 2015 Academy Awards...or how much we hated them. There's only one way to find out. (HINT: Press Play)

Chatting with D.M. Pulley

On Episode 58 of The Martin Lastrapes Show Podcast Hour, I enjoyed a wonderful conversation with D.M. Pulley, author of the #1 bestselling novel The Dead Key. 

During my conversation with Pulley we covered a series of topics, including:

  • Moving to Cleveland to study engineering
  • The tension of having a job that doesn't satisfy your creativity
  • Kurt Vonnegut's Slaughterhouse-Five
  • The value of reading comic books
  • Figuring out how to write a novel
  • Trying to create likable characters
  • Struggling to get The Dead Key published
  • Winning the 2014 Amazon Breakthrough Novel Award

Of The Dead Key, here's what Publishers Weekly had to say:

"This superb novel tells the story of two heroines separated by 20 years: 1978’s Beatrice Baker and 1998’s Iris Latch, both of whom become perilously embroiled in the behind-the-scenes dirty dealings at the First Bank of Cleveland...Readers, along with the main characters, will be sucked into the secrets the bank holds and will remain guessing until the end. Fast paced, faultlessly written, and engaging, this is a page turner with a very surprising and plausible twist. There are not enough superlatives to describe this engrossing novel."

 

Professional Wrestling Podcasts

As many of you know, I love professional wrestling. I discovered as a kid and have grown up with up for most of my life. Part of the unforeseen joys of hosting The Martin Lastrapes Show Podcast Hour is it's afforded me the opportunity to have conversations with professional wrestlers, including former WWE Diva Katarina Leigh Waters (Episode 16) and the Original "Mr. Wonderful" Rock Riddle (Episode 25 and Episode 26).

I recently had an opportunity to chat with former TNA star and current Nigel McGuinness and former WWE superstar Sinn Bodhi (aka Kizarny). I also had a chat with my buddy Tim Chizmar who shared some audio from one of his latest comedy shows, which included WWE superstar Rob Van Dam stand up comedy and former WWE superstar Gangrel doing a Q & A.

You can listen to all three episodes below, so press play and enjoy...

nigel-pod-banner.jpg

Topics Covered

  • Nigel's life after wrestling
  • Nigel's project L.A. Fight 
  • Martin's mom 

Topics Covered

Topics Covered

  • Tim's nudist comedy
  • WWE superstar Rob Van Dam doing stand-up comedy
  • Former WWE superstar Gangrel doing a Q & A